The Thornbury-Clarksburg Rotary Club reached its 70th Anniversary this month.
The occasion has given cause to club members to stop and reflect. They look back with pride on those 70 years of service - both to their own local community and to the greater community throughout the world. But they also look back with a huge appreciation for the steadfast support they have received for all of those years from this community.
As a way to thank the community for this ongoing support, T-C Rotarians have planned a free community picnic/barbeque for the public - Sunday, July 27 at the Rotary Pavilion in Bayview Park.
Organized in conjunction with the regular Sunday night Jazz by the Bay series, the local Rotarians have not only sponsored the excellent 60's tribute band Return Trip for the evening, but they have laid on free food and drinks for those who attend.
Adults will enjoy the Beef-on-a Bun, while the kids are bound to enjoy the hotdogs as well. A variety of drinks will also be available. As a departure from the normal Sunday night schedule, the musicians of Return Trip have agreed to come early and stay late - they will play during the picnic/Birthday Party from 5 until 7, but will also do their "regular gig" from 7 'til 9!
When asked for details, Club Service Director, Rotarian Karen James commented, "We just hope that members of the community will come and join us for a little food and a lot of music. It will be a low-key, relaxed event and should be a night of fun for the family! It's a way for us to say 'Thank you!' for all their support over the years."
As the year progresses, local Rotarians plan to highlight some of their history and hope to share and celebrate it with the public. Although a total number has never been calculated, some longtime club members have estimated that over 70 years, the club must have raised over $2 million to be spent on benevolent work here and abroad.
They look back with pride to the Haiti project in the early 80's, for example, that saw the club lead a huge Rotary District 6330 project that sent used hospital equipment to the impoverished country, as well as many other Haitian projects in the areas of health, education and agriculture.
A water project in the Philippines followed. And an orphanage project in Manaus, Brazil also comes to mind as another of the club's milestones in the area of International Service.
One has only to look around the community at the Beaver Valley Community Centre and Arena, the L.E. Shore Library and the Rotary Pavilion to see evidence of the many local capital projects the club has supported over the past couple of decades. Rotary's contribution to those projects alone: $350,000!
Add to that the $150,000 Rotarians have pledged over six years to the Meaford Hospital Foundation and the recent large pledge in support of the new Community Health Centres clinic in Thornbury, and one can easily see the dedication the club has to our community.
Of course, one cannot forget the ongoing support that Thornbury-Clarksburg Rotary has given to Rotary International's Polio Plus campaign. Working hand in hand with the World Health Organization and many other groups, Rotary has been striving since 1987 to eradicate polio from the world.
The local Rotary club has contributed around $40,000 as a club, with many thousands more being donated by individual Rotarians. The campaign has suffered many setbacks over the years, but has now narrowed down the areas where wild polio can still be found to a handful of countries, including such rugged and challenging countries as Afghanistan. It is estimated that by the time polio has been beaten, Rotarians worldwide will have invested over $600 million!
Rotarians are looking forward to having the public join them for their "70th Birthday Party" on Sunday at Bayview Park. As indicated it will be a chance to look back and celebrate the successes of the club's first 70 years and also to look forward to the many interesting challenges that lie ahead.
Good food, good music and good company - they feel it should be a winning combination!
